New figures highlight Iran's road safety problem

More than 270,000 Iranians have been killed in road accidents, according to recent official statistics.

The Mehr News Agency reports that, according to the statistics, in the first eight months of the current Iranian year, 14,000 people were killed in road accidents.

The highest number of road deaths happened in 2005 with 27,759 deaths.

Iran's road are among the most dangerous in the world, with an average of more than 20,000 road deaths per year,

The statistics indicate that in the past 10 years, more than 2.22 million people have been injured in driving accidents.

Road accidents remain the second-highest cause of death in Iran after cardiovascular diseases.

Experts say "the high density of vehicles on the roads, low highway capacities, the existence of more than 2,000 dangerous points on the roads, the lack of safety services and the lack of a proper driving culture" are the reasons for the high frequency of road accidents in Iran.